Angela Ball, 27, waived her right Thursday to have a preliminary hearing in Lincoln County Court.

Ball allegedly wrote up to 10 forged checks that turned up at retailers around town totaling at $1,300. The checks matched some stolen in early July from a 64-year-old man in the 2400 block of N. Oak.

Investigation of the checks began July 5 and the next day, 6 police were called to Famous Footwear where Roxanne Duran, 38, of North Platte tried to return shoes that were bought with one of the forged checks.

Duran was cited for aiding and abetting forgery.

Ball was identified by investigators as a suspect. An investigator found her at the county courthouse July 30 and arrested her on the forgery charge.

Second degree forgery is a class III felony, punishable by up to 20 years prison and a $25,000 fine.

In court, defense attorney Amanda Speichert asked for a bond reduction, with no objection from Deputy Lincoln County Attorney Jennifer Wellan.

Lincoln County Judge Michael Piccolo lowered Ball's bond from $50,000 to $12,500. A district court date has not been set.

Ball's arrest record shows she has been charged several times with possession of amphetamine, as well as probation violations and disturbing the peace.

Also, in county court:

Carl J. McKinney, 26, of North Platte, was convicted of assaulting an officer and arson, both misdemeanors.

McKinney pled guilty the charges. He was sentenced to 270 days in the county jail and he also received credit for 35 days he has already served.

McKinney assaulted the officer in March, after the officer answered a disturbance call in McKinney’s neighborhood, where McKinney was reportedly banging on doors and yelling. While he was arrested, he spit blood on the officer.

The arson charge came from a fire at a mobile home in the 2000 block of West 16th in early May. According to police spokesman Rodney Brown and the North Platte Fire Department, McKinney spread gasoline from a fire pit in the backyard to other areas, including a neighbor’s adjoining fence. His mobile home and a television cable were also damaged.

The May arrest was McKinney’s third of the year. Jail records show that he has been arrested nine times since January 2011 on such charges as driving under the influence, driving under suspension, probation violations, assault, trespassing and once because he was wanted in Logan County.

McKinney accepted a plea deal from Deputy Lincoln County Attorney Austen Leighty at a preliminary hearing on June 20.

But at that time, Lincoln County Judge Kent Turnbull raised objections to the reduced charge for assaulting an officer charge, because the assault involved blood and saliva. Turnbull ordered a pre-sentence investigation.

Allen

A 26-year-old North Platte woman, Toni Allen, waived her preliminary hearings on two charges and Lincoln County Judge Michael Piccolo bound the cases to the district court.

Allen was picked up picked up on a warrant for failing to appear on a previous charge, and jail staff found what appeared to be a small amount of methamphetamine and a prescription drug, Clonazepam, when she was being booked.

In June, Allen was booked for possession of amphetamine and theft, to which a failure to appear charge was added. Allen served five days when she posted the required 10 percent of a $10,000 bond and was released.

According to sheriff’s records, Allen was previously charged in December with child abuse and she served time in jail.

On Thursday, Piccolo lowered two $15,000 bonds to $7,500 and set them to run concurrently, so Allen could bond out with $750.